Wednesday, July 25, 2012

This lovely photo was posted on my Pinterest by Caroline...Thanks! :D Such a great shot of a couple of showgirls relaxing while touring Florida. The hair tutorial was based on the style on the left! Click here to view the hair tutorial!

Monday, May 14, 2012

You might be asking..."Jen are all your blog posts going to be about running?". Short answer...No. :D Running and exercise is not my natural state (it's more pretty dresses, fancy hair, game controller in hand, and TV playing a great movie) so I need to keep myself motivated in the early stages and sharing with you all does that for me! You all are my cheerleaders and coaches, and before you ask...your salary is paid in virtual hugs.

Heading into my second week I'm still arguing with myself and fighting to not procrastinate. Do you know that I actually used the excuse of "I can't go cuz I forgot to wash my running bra"...insert eye rolling and a disbelieving snort here. Really Jen, that was the best you could come up with? I've heard I'm not alone in this and that it could take up to a month before it stops happening consistently. What really motivates me now to get out the door is the euphoric feeling I get when Doom (see previously post for explanation) tells me sweetly in her robotic voice that I have completed my run for the day. At that moment I get a rush of adrenaline as I calmly walk down the street with the stupidest grin on my face looking around to see if anyone else has noticed the momentous event that has just occurred. Mentally, of course, I do a Judd Nelson Breakfast Club fist to the sky in jubilee. The amazing thing is that this feeling lasts for hours after I finish running, I get more stuff done around the house, feel a sense of accomplishment at ticking all those items off my to-do list, and generally feel bouncy and more completely in my body. Later when I wind down I feel properly exhausted and entitled to some quality time on the couch with my cats and my remote and even later to sleep soundly and restfully. All these fabulous results from getting up off the couch and yet tomorrow I am sure I will try to convince myself to stay home with an even dumber excuse!

How do you all motivate yourself to get moving?Total Distance: 1.23 miles (I think it's more time than distanceOverall Pace: 15:45 (worse than day 1 but I got stopped at a lot of red lights...the downside of city running)Fastest Pace: 10:07

Now for the girly pretty! If you following A Vintage Vanity on Facebook you'll know that my Mom recently bought me a lovely dress and my Sister and her family got me some great shoes, for my birthday. I happily wore all of them on Mother's day. So here's a little OOTD shot for you!

I am in love with this dress, it looks great with or without a petticoat and it has a bit of spandex in it so it is incredibly comfortable to wear. The shoes I am in awe of. That sounds like such an odd statement, but normally I don't wear heels since my feet tend to reject them but these are so comfortable I feel like I could run a marathon in them...all that and they are super cute! Old Navy is my supplier for my cardigan addiction...it's so light and soft...swoon. As always Belle Blossoms has some of the loveliest flowers around.

Eep! Hope you all enjoy my first OOTD! :D Big thanks to my Sister for taking this shot for me...punch ya!

Monday, May 7, 2012

Recently I watched youtuber ShayCarl's recent ShayLoss video "Eating your Weight Loss Questions". Shay is an incredibly popular youtuber who recently lost 100 pounds and ran two marathons. Suffice it to say I was tremendously inspired to get on my feet and make it happen and get fit!

Before I broke my hand I was doing a pretty good job working out at the gym and doing weight training, taking vitamins (Shaklee, which I can't say enough good things about...I'll do a post in the future about this story) to help with fatigue and joint pain, and eating better. Banned from doing any weight training my butt began once again to imprint itself on my couch...PJs, cats, pillows, and Netflix streaming are an addictive combination. Listening to Shay telling us to just commit to doing something for 7 days...just 7 days...just move. I thought I could do that! So I downloaded the "Couch to 5K" app and started today...Week 1 Day 1 (ACK!).

I made that seem so easy didn't I...well let me share with you how it really started this morning! I optimistically set my alarm clock for 6am. Snort...followed by an eye roll, have I never met myself? For me getting up early is reserved for emergencies and airport departures. Soooo...early morning runs are out. While at work I decided to tell a few friends that I was planning on doing this, that way it would be a little harder to back out by 5pm rolled around. Of course in the hours leading up to 5pm I continually found excuses for why I couldn't run. With the support of some great friends continually cheering me on and telling me how great I would feel afterwards I finally geared up and headed out.

With a uncertain spring in my step I started off. Five minute warm-up walk...pfft, easy. I jaunted past beautiful brownstones on a leafy tree lined boulevard and as time past the RUN loomed ever before me...step after step I grew more nervous. Then the robot in my pocket (we'll just call her Doom) informed me it was time to run...GULP. Through the winding path of the small park I ran...huh, I didn't keel over, I didn't spontaneously combust, no one stopped to laugh, it was alright. So for the next 10 mins I walked for 90 seconds and ran for 60. Things were just dandy, that is until I reached the halfway mark! From that point on every time the voice of Doom told me it was now time to run I wanted to simultaneously scream/cry/sit/tantrum...but I did, mentally complaining the entire 60 never ending seconds. Then a miraculous thing happened...Doom told me to begin my cool down walk! With a big smile on my face I listened to Doom's dulcet tones as she walked me home telling me I had done it and going over my stats! Total Distance: 1.87 milesOverall Pace: 15:14

Wow...I cannot believe I did it! :D Now the big question is...can I do it again tomorrow?!

Lessons Learned:-Don't wear shoes that give you blisters...or at least band-aid up beforehand! -Learn how to use the music player before starting your running app-Perhaps look other runners in the eye when they pass by...heck your one of them now!

Thursday, February 23, 2012

I was very excited to get a request to do a Dita Von Teese hair tutorial, she's so incredibly stunning and I love every look that she has worn! Since there are quite a few tutorials on youtube already for her looks I wanted to find one that had not been done as much, but at the same time was a defining look. I found so many looks I would love to do, but settled on her smooth barrel curls as it's so sleek and glamorous, plus I really wanted to play up that great swooping bang!